Chapter 1697: Clear-cut in gratitude and grudges, doing things entirely by a single track of mind

It is as the saying goes: the bold are stuffed to death, the timid are starved to death.

Zhou Zongyan was also a ruthless person.

Since he could not give up the honor already in his hands, nor the capital for promotion and wealth, he simply went all the way...

But he was not a reckless man either.

He could not bear this pressure alone.

He snuck off to the Prefecture Magistrate's office and had a secret talk with the Magistrate for two hours.

Very soon...

The verdict for the three members of the Zeng family father and sons came down: immediate execution! Before they could even reach the execution ground, the three of them died in their prison cell; it was said they had caught a cold, and died because treatment was ineffective.

Within a month, the entire Zeng family, on their way back to their hometown, encountered bandits. From the old to the young, including the servants who followed them, all twenty-some people were spared by none, dying without a whole corpse!

The Zeng family completely vanished from the Changshui County territory, not even leaving behind a single descendant.

Two of the Zeng family's daughters who had married out wanted to borrow their husbands' families' influence to seek justice, but as soon as they made a move, they were announced to have died suddenly. Soon after, their husbands remarried.

The Zeng family?

From then on, there were no more Zeng family members in Changshui County!

The reason Qu Yuan knew this so clearly was that after he returned to his hometown and learned of the Zeng family's extermination, he felt there was something suspicious about it. Thus, he secretly interrogated certain personnel involved in the case back then. Especially that old fellow who was the prison manager of the criminal division at the time.

Perhaps the old fellow felt guilty in his heart, or perhaps he wanted to leave with more peace of mind before he died, so he spilled everything he knew in one go.

The injustice of the Zeng family, more than ten years later, was finally brought to light.

Just because of Zhou Zongyan's own selfishness, just for the sake of promotion and wealth, and just because he didn't want his reputation damaged, he exterminated the entire Zeng family, not even sparing the married-out daughters.

An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth!

This was Qu Yuan's thought.

Since he could not repay the kindness, he would take revenge for Master Zeng's family.

He lurked for several months, investigating Zhou Zongyan's entire family, and then on a dark and windy night, he acted decisively. He slaughtered Zhou Zongyan's entire family. He then traveled a thousand miles to Zhou Zongyan's hometown and slaughtered the entire Zhou clan, not even sparing the married-out daughters.

Just like what Zhou Zongyan had done to Master Zeng's family back then, cutting weeds and eliminating roots, leaving not one behind.

He came to the capital to complete his final repayment of kindness.

The reason Zhou Zongyan dared to exterminate Master Zeng's family back then was because he had superiors backing him. Those former superiors had now all come to the capital to hold high positions.

Only after killing the last person would this repayment of kindness be considered complete.

It was just a pity that he fell short of success.

Now he was trapped in prison, his martial pulse sealed, a useless person.

Unable to finish avenging the extermination of Master Zeng's family, he was unreconciled.

He stared blankly at Chen Guanlou, "I have said everything clearly. I admit to the crimes that are mine! Even if you slice me into a thousand pieces, I admit it. However, I only ask Jiang Jiang Yucheng Chen to grant me a convenience; let me kill the last person, and I will surrender and willingly go to my death!"

"You are quite stubborn! Doing things entirely by a single track of mind. Back then, those who received kindness from the Zeng family were more than hundreds or thousands. So many years have passed, yet has a single person stood up to seek justice for Master Zeng's family? There isn't even one who stood up for justice. Only you, who now barely counts as having achieved success and having a bright future, disregard your own self and insist on avenging Master Zeng. What are you thinking?"

Chen Guanlou's tone was disdainful, but his eyes were shining brightly.

A real man!

In this day and age, pure and persistent people like Qu Yuan were already rare. He could be called a rare animal.

He just wanted to chat more and understand more.

"Repay kindness with kindness, repay grudges with grudges. If I cherish my own life but ignore the extermination of Master Zeng's family, do I still count as a human?"

"Others don't think that way."

"How they think is not my concern." Qu Yuan said firmly, his gaze resolute, "I only know what I should do. The injustice of Master Zeng's family cannot be extinguished just like that, and the culprits who murdered his family cannot be allowed to remain at large for a lifetime. I only do what I believe is right. If Jiang Jiang Yucheng Chen does not agree, there is nothing I can do. Now, as a prisoner, I am the fish and you are the knife and cutting board; kill or slice me as you please."

Qu Yuan had a fearless look, not afraid of death at all.

In martial path cultivation, he disregarded his own life, only to break through as quickly as possible.

Now, to avenge Master Zeng, he likewise disregarded his own self, putting life and death out of his mind.

Master Zeng had the grace of saving his life, three consecutive years of life-saving grace. Only by surviving did he encounter the greatest opportunity of his life, and have the chance to embark on the martial path.

It could be said that Master Zeng gave him the grace of rebirth, giving him the chance to change his fate.

He, Qu Yuan, had no other skills, only a clear distinction between gratitude and grudges.

Chen Guanlou looked at the other party and nodded knowingly, "Your methods of killing were indeed clean and swift. However, you cannot kill that Assistant Zhang Yushi-in-Chief. He has martial artist guards in his home, whose rank is above yours. Zhou Zongyan's entire family was exterminated, followed immediately by a Ministry of Revenue official dying in his home. You have already startled the snake. If you go to kill, you are purely delivering your head. I locked you in the Heavenly Prison for your own good. Don't let your mind wander, just sit in prison properly. When the time is right, I will let you out."

"Let me out?" Qu Yuan couldn't believe it, his expression stunned, "You aren't killing me?"

"Why would I kill you?" Chen Guanlou smiled with a mysterious expression.

"Then why did you lock me in the Heavenly Prison?"

"The Heavenly Prison is only responsible for holding prisoners, not for investigating cases, nor for sentencing prisoners. I said, not letting you out is to prevent you from delivering your head."

Qu Yuan was indeed a very stubborn person, "Even if I die, I must kill him."

"You cannot kill him!" Chen Guanlou guaranteed, saying very certainly: "You are no match for them. Don't talk about fighting to the death. Under my hands, you can't even breathe steadily; think about what level you are at."

"Could it be that the guards in that Zhang Yushi's home are of a rank comparable to Jiang Jiang Yucheng Chen?"

"That's not the case. But for him to kill you is as easy as turning over a hand, like cutting melons and vegetables. Understand?" Chen Guanlou kindly reminded, "You have no chance to get close enough to kill; you would lose your head before you even got near that Zhang Yushi. Recently, martial artists have been guarding the Zhang Yushi's side, just waiting for you to throw yourself into the net."

After Chen Guanlou's explanation, Qu Yuan understood, and took it to heart.

"If one year doesn't work, then two years, three years; I can afford to wait. I don't believe that martial artists will guard his side forever. Sooner or later, I will find a chance to kill him."

"With such determination, you can succeed in anything you do. I wish you success in getting what you want."

Qu Yuan was shocked upon hearing this, "You aren't stopping me? You are even wishing me success?"

No matter how he thought about it, it felt abnormal; how could such a thing be possible? Moreover, Chen Guanlou was a Heavenly Jiang Jiang Yucheng; strictly speaking, he was also a part of the imperial court.

Not reporting him was one thing, but he was happy to see it happen, and even protecting him.

Chen Guanlou kindly explained: "I have said long ago, the Heavenly Prison is only responsible for guarding prisoners, not for investigating cases, and even less for sentencing. If you want to kill, how could I stop you? As for whether you can succeed in killing, and whether you can escape unscathed afterwards, that depends on your own ability. If one day you are caught and thrown into the Heavenly Prison, I cannot help you either. If the higher-ups sentence you to death, then you must die!"

He was a Heavenly Jiang Jiang Yucheng who kept public and private matters separate, and would never bend the law for personal gain! ===== CHAPTER 1698 =====